This invention relates to a game device for propelling a projectile into the air so that it can be struck by a bat and driven a distance. The device is particularly suitable for use in a game that can be played by one or more people or as an exercise device.
Various devices are known in the art for propelling objects such as sticks into the air so that they can then be struck by a bat or similar deivce. Typical and perhaps simplest of these are the games commonly known as "tip-cat" in which an elongated projectile is rested in an inclined or horizontal position so that when it is struck with a bat or stick on one end it "flips" up into the air where it can be struck a second time. Devices of this type are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,183,532 to Iglesias et al; U.S. Pat. No. 4,149,724 to Walsh; U.S. Pat. No. 4,093,226 to Priestle; U.S. Pat. No. 3,817,525 to Henry and U.S. Pat. No. 3,232,618 to Anderson, Sr. While such devices are relatively simple, the pat of the spinning projectile is essentially unpredictable and may even hit the "batter".
U.S. Pat. No. 4,052,065 to Rodriguez describes a device in which a short, cylindrical projectile with an inclined face on one end is nested horizontally atop a spring loaded plunger. When the projectile is struck downward with a bat, the plunger compresses the spring, which, on release, propells the projectile upward. The device produces an erratic, unpredictable flight for the projectile and is relatively complex in structure.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a game device for propelling upward a projectile into the air where it can be batted, which is relatively simple and inexpensive to build and which produces a predictable and safe path of flight for the upward propelled projectile.